Three charged in connection to Somerset’s contaminated water scare

Friday

Charges have been filed against three workers for their involvement in the water contamination scare that caused a three-day townwide ban against drinking water.

Charges have been filed against three workers for their involvement in the water contamination scare that caused a three-day townwide ban against drinking water.

Two employees of Hydrograss Technologies, a subcontractor for the Veterans Memorial Bridge project, will be charged with wanton destruction of property, conspiracy and unlicensed connection to a distribution system.

A worker for general contractor Cianbro will be charged with interfering with metering of water, unlicensed connection to a distribution system, and larceny of less than $250.

Somerset police filed the charges in District Court in Fall River on Wednesday. The names of those being charged weren’t released because they won’t formally be charged until they are summonsed into court.

An investigation showed that an employee for Cianbro granted permission to Hydrograss Technologies to connect to a hydrant on Brayton Avenue on May 31 for water after a water delivery apparently fell through, according to Somerset Police.

Workers were not given permission to tap into the town’s water system.

Contamination worries stemmed from a failure to attach a back-flow preventer or meter between the workers’ equipment and the hydrant, police said. Because the equipment wasn’t used properly, an unknown amount of hydroseed material entered the town’s water system.

The town immediately told residents and businesses they couldn’t use the water for drinking, washing dishes or preparing food. The ban lasted roughly three days.

More than one million gallons of water was flushed to get rid of the hydroseed material. No one was known to have gotten sick.

The investigation was conducted by the Somerset Police Department with the town’s Water Department and state and federal agencies.

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